Day 5, A “Capitol Endeavor” (Washington D.C.) (5/16/19)

Hey y’all, welcome back!

It seems hard to believe that most of our time in D.C. has already been spent. Only two more days remain before we leave a week before we got here! Today was a day well spent of course, having gone on a personal tour of the U.S. Capitol, as well as visiting Madame Tussaud’s, an unexpected stop that features every single U.S. President and many well-known figures in detailed wax sculptures.

Let’s dive right into the very heart of our lawmaking process, shall we?

 

United States Capitol

Having only been in the lower levels of the Capitol Building due to restoration located on the dome four years ago, it was a relief that we were able to get the full experience of the Capitol!

We had applied weeks in advance for a personalized tour from the office of our local Congressman, Chip Roy. Passing, we needed to arrive at his office in the Longworth Office Building by 10:00 AM.

The Longworth Building, named after Speaker Nicholas Longworth, is one of the buildings outside of the Capitol Building itself, that houses extra office space, particularly for Representatives.

This long hallway is one of several in the building that has the official offices of each Representative… we could see them from all over.. Wyoming, California, Florida, Nebraska…

We then found Congressman Chip Roy’s office! Inside, were much of his personal staff, which were maintaining the place in his absense (supposedly having gone off to listen to President Trump’s new immigration proposal).

A map of New Braunfels hanging in the wall! It was incredible to find a taste of home here in D.C.!

Soon our guide, Hannah, led us throughout the complex, and into a massive series of underground tunnels that run directly underneath the Capitol Building and it’s surrounding structures.

It was truly a magnificent scale to see… one tunnel led down to the other buildings, such as Rayburn and Cannon Office Buildings, or even the Library of Congress.

One long winding tunnel led further northeast and underneath the Capitol Building… seeing each person walking down the way was fascinating… who knew if they were possibly Congressmen?

… hoo boy…

Thankfully, Hannah and our group were able to skip most of the line, and begin our tour! The Capitol was just as extensive below ground as it was above it.

Looking up through the window, one can see the dome of the Capitol! The Statue of Freedom still rests upon it’s mighty pinnacle, as it has since 1863.

The Statuary Gallery of the Capitol is very well detailed and famous, two statues from each of the 50 states can be found scattered around the Capitol.

This particular statue is of Jeannette Rankin of Montana, the first woman ever elected to Congress. She is especially famous for being the only congressman to oppose going into World War II, following the Attack on Pearl Harbor.

The statue on the left side of Rankin belongs to Po’Pay, the pueblo revolutionist who led the charge of the Pueblo Revolt against Spanish Inquisition, leading to the preservation and survival of Pueblo Culture.

Oh, and remember that golden-ish statue a couple of pictures back? That is King Kamehameha I, who was the first King of Hawaii, and who united all the Hawaiian under his rule.

This was the original mold for the Statue of Freedom, the large statue mentioned earlier. It rests here in the visitor center, providing an adequate look for it’s otherwise inaccessible counterpart.

We hurried further into the bowels of the Capitol.

These were the original foundation stones of the Old Capitol Building. After the building was sacked by the British during the War of 1812, the building was enlarged. Few signs remain of the old building, though they do still remain.

This large room of pillars is situated directly under the Capitol Rotunda, and is lined to the wall with many more statues.

The center star of this room also represents the very center of the District of Columbia, since nearly every street in the city is centered or branched from Capitol Hill.

Fun fact, Congress originally planned to have George Washington buried underneath this star, but southerners, adhering to the late general’s will, kept his remains at Mount Vernon, his beloved home.

John C. Calhoun is one of our more controversial political figures in Early American History. The Vice-President of both John Quincy Adams and Andrew Jackson, Calhoun was a master of senate proceedings, and was very proficient in his role as Senator from South Carolina. His pro-stance towards Slavery (and the attempted secession of South Carolina from the Union), continues to earn him the ire of many who evaluate his legacy.

Caesar Rodney of Delaware was a great patriot of the Revolutionary War, who was a member of the 3-man delegation from Delaware to the Second Continental Congress. The vote of Delaware for Independence was deadlocked between the other two members, and Rodney, having been bedridden with sickness in Dover, rode 80 miles on his horse in the pouring rain to make his vote in time, thus turning the tide for the vote. His likeness is still memorialized on the Delaware State Quarter.

Also note the neat bust of Abraham Lincoln next to Rodney.

This corridor branching off from the room is actually where the President emerges onto the West Front of the building, where he is inaugurated for his new term. It’s naturally off limits to the general public.

These old pillars are actually from the original Capitol structure. Note the Corn Cobs that make the top of the pillar; a plant of sustenance for the early settlers of the New World.

Looking up a smaller rotunda. Mom was very fond of this extravagent chandelier.

And this was the old Supreme Court room, where the body of 9 judges oversaw the most pressing cases for the first half of the 19th Century. These included cases such as United States V. The Amistad, Gibbons V. Ogden, and even the infamous “Dred Scott Decision.”

Soon enough however, we entered into the massive Rotunda… one of the most famous rooms of D.C.

(Sorry for the distortion.)

One neat wall of the rotunda. Those two statues are of Presidents James A. Garfield and Andrew Jackson.

This portrait depicts the Pilgrims of the Mayflower onboard the… well, Mayflower, creating the… er, Mayflower Compact. Hm.

A portrait of George Washington’s resignation from the Continental army. How on earth do they paint these with such high quality?

Even more statues surrounded the Rotunda, most of which were Presidents. Other than Lincoln and Washington, there was also…

Gerald Ford,

Ronald Reagan,

And Dwight D. Eisenhower.

This white circle also marks the center of the Capitol, and of the District of Columbia. Many deceased individuals have laid in state here, including presidents, politicians, and other worthy notables. President George H.W. Bush was the most recent to lie in state here.

Though not as tall as the Texas dome, this one is much larger and grandiose. It was certainly impressive to look at. Though, I do wonder how tall the ladder must have been to paint that entire ceiling…

We then headed into the Senate wing.

Here’s my Mom with that chandelier again!

This is the old Senate Chamber, which was used before converting to the current-day one. It was a lot smaller.

The Senate was much smaller then, but still resorted to the two seats per state rule as the current Senate does. Put that together, and you get 100 Senators currently serving.

The Presiding Officer occupies the top chair, which is officially the Vice-President’s chair. When he is not in session, a different individual, usually the President Pro-Tempore, steps up to lead proceedings.

As the entrance to the Senate Gallery wasn’t here, we went on to explore the House side.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi actually has her office here, not far from the rotunda. Though the House was in session, Speaker Pelosi was not present.

This massive room was the original House chamber, but has since been the host for the greatest portion of the Statuary Collection.

What detail…

Look! Sam Houston! This famous Texas Revolutionary led the fight for Texas Independence against Mexico, and attempted in vain to keep Texas in the Union before the Civil War.

Statues of Governor John Burke of North Dakota, inventor Thomas Edison of Ohio, and General John Sevier of Tennessee.

Senator Daniel Webster of Massachusetts, and Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona.

We then went into each of the galleries of the chambers, as they were in session. Security was tight, and we had to leave many of our belongings in safe spots (including our phones), yet we managed to observe each chamber for a time.

The large House chamber is where all of the major figures of government listen to the President deliver the State of the Union Address, or any other major speeches given by him.  The proceedings today however, did not seem to be of any importance at all, only concerning minor issues, some of which concerned updates on Police Week. We spent a long while observing the massive historic room, and after not encountering anyone recognizable for a while, we then proceeded onto the Senate Chamber.

Though smaller in size, the Senate Chamber was still very large, and got a view from about the perspective of this stock photo.

It seemed that a vote on some sort of appointment nomination was wrapping up, though there were hardly any senators in the room. We DID however, see Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky cast his vote, and then silently walking back and exited through a side door.

Then, after the affirmation of the appointment, TEXAS SENATOR John Cornyn walked into the chamber, stood at his desk, and delivered an address concerning the church shooting at Sutherland Springs, and how it could be used to enforce greater background checks concerning the sell of firearms, and better ways of ensuring less attacks from ever happening again…

His oratorical skills were certainly terrific, and his speech not only instilled tears of sympathy in us for the relatives of the victims of the shooting, but also made us connect deeper with his empathy for this sort of affair. It was quite a wonder to witness, especially on such a bipartisan and specific account.

After our tour was done, we walked outside.

Simply massive…

Until a couple of decades ago, this would have been the place where the Inaugurational Ceremony would be held. This is the East side, or the “East Front”.

The House of Representatives Wing had a bit of exterior restoration on it. I’m okay with it, since it didn’t hinder us in any way.

And here is the Senate Wing.

 

Mini-me.

Across the street from the “East Front”, were two notable buildings.

The first was the Supreme Court Building, the headquarters of the Judicial Branch of Government. A very grand building, with very grand pillars.

A brief stop, since guards patrol the front.

The other building was the Library of Congress!

Arguably the largest library in the World, the Library of Congress officially serves the U.S. Congress directly, and is the De-facto national library of the United States.

This library contains more than 167,000,000 items, of which include books (and other printed materials), recordings, photographs, maps, sheet music, manuscripts, pamphlets, film footage, and other forms.

The main Building is called the “Thomas Jefferson Building”, since Jefferson donated his entire private library to it’s founding. There are three other buildings besides it. The John Adams and James Madison Buildings are next to it, while another building is located in Culpeper, Virginia.

This neat fountain in front of the Library is of Poseidon, God of the Sea (or Neptune, depending on your favourite mythology. Whatever floats your boat).

Looking for some time to kill, we stopped at an unexpected venue on the trip, and secretly one that I had hoped we’d have time for…

Madame Tussaud’s: Washington D.C.

While there is technically one in San Antonio, this special attraction actually has the entire collection of U.S. Presidents! So, just to kill a bit of time, we entered into the Presidential Section… for the most part, we were pleasantly suprised!

Firstly, this is Madame Tussaud, who vowed to create life-like wax sculptures that were like pieces of art. Her legacy certainly makes it seem that way.

Even the early presidents like George Washington were completed in extreme detail. It really felt like I was gliding across the Delaware River into New Jersey on that cold Christmas Night, with Washington himself!

Thomas Jefferson was delighted to shake my hand! Or at least, as delighted as a wax figure could be (which I’m sure isn’t very much).

On the other hand, John Quincy Adams didn’t seem very emotional when wanting to meet me (again, likely for the same reasons as Jefferson).

While Abraham Lincoln was certainly lifelike, I’m certainly glad the theatre Booth wasn’t either (Upon editing this, I realized that I accidentally made a double pun there).

Woodrow Wilson is perhaps one of my favorites here. With his signature zygomatic cheekbones, it was certainly Woodrow Wilson (and yes, I had to look that up to make sure it was the proper term. My speciality is History, not Anatomy).

Though not a President, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill was still in the same gallery, and just as in the flesh (or wax if you will) as the others were.

Truman was perhaps one of the most realistic of all of them. It really did feel like I was standing next to the fiery farmer from “Missoura”.

After taking cover to avoid enemy fire, we pressed the attack.

General Dwight David Eisenhower was actually the namesake for my dad and uncle, with the first two words of the name applying to both of them, respectively.

Alright! I confess! I was the one that ate all the oatmeal cookies when I was six!

Seriously though, J. Edgar Hoover’s stare is slightly menacing…

What presidential couple could better present the youthful image of the Camelot Presidency like the Kennedy’s?

Out of all the Presidents in the hall, Lyndon B. Johnson was the most realistic… the wheel-dealer from Texas could be quite the imposing figure at 6’3, particularly when he wanted to intimidate you…

Seriously… that’s LBJ through and through. And I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not!

 

We also met Jimmy Carter!

Wait… that’s not it…

Ah, that’s better!

George H.W. Bush was also very accurate, particularly in the face. Few realized that he was 6’3, though that was probably due to his use of a wheelchair in his final years.

And finally, I got to be President for a day (how I wish that would happen… but well, I suppose I can only dream.

After leaving, and resting at our hotel for a while, we walked a few blocks down the road at Night, to see the White House once more.

The Treasury Building looks great at night!

And so does The White House! The President is likely in there as we speak (or type).

I’m not sure if I was either falling asleep, or blinded by the camera flash. Could it be both?

I love this photo. That’s going in my favorites collection.

And that was our day in a nutshell! I won’t try to do anything too philosophical this time around, I’ll save that for the next post (be very afraid).

When next I post, we will have gone to not only Washington National Cathedral, but also the Woodrow Wilson House in the prestigious Kalorama Neighborhood of D.C. Can’t wait for you to see it!

See you then!